Nagorno-Karabakh: Azerbaijan announces that it is proceeding with Russia to “demilitarize” the region’s forces

Azerbaijan announced on Saturday September 23 that it was carrying out a “demilitarization” of the forces of Nagorno-Karabakh, a secessionist region mainly populated by Armenians where Azerbaijani forces won a lightning victory at the start of the week.

“In close cooperation with Russian peacekeepers, we are carrying out the demilitarization” of separatist troops and providing “support to civilians,” Anar Eyvazov, spokesperson for the Azerbaijani army, told the press. in Shusha, a town in Nagorno-Karabakh controlled by Baku.

“We have already seized weapons and ammunition,” he added, without further details. The disarmament process “may take time” because some separatists were based in remote mountainous areas, Mr. Eyvazov continued. “The priority is mine clearance and demilitarization,” he insisted.

At one of the accesses to Choucha, a journalist from Agence France-Presse (AFP) saw a tank and, more generally, a strong military presence. Mortars are also positioned on a nearby hill, aimed towards Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh which, the separatists claim, Azerbaijani troops are surrounding, she also noted.

First ICRC humanitarian convoy in Nagorno-Karabakh

Six armored vehicles, more than 800 small arms and around 5,000 munitions have so far been returned, declared Friday the Russian peace contingent present in this territory where a ceasefire was concluded on Wednesday the day after the outbreak of the Azerbaijani assault. “In accordance with the agreements on the cessation of hostilities, the armed formations of Karabakh began to hand over” their weapons “under the control of Russian peacekeeping forces,” the Russian Defense Ministry explained at the time.

The talks between the Nagorno Karabakh authorities and the Azerbaijani side, which began on Thursday “under the auspices” of the Russian interposition force, should make it possible to “organize the process of withdrawal of troops and ensure the return to their homes of citizens displaced by the ‘military aggression’, the separatists said.

Furthermore, a first convoy of the International Red Cross entered Nagorno-Karabakh on Saturday. “The ICRC passed through the Lachin corridor to bring the population mainly 70 tonnes of humanitarian aid,” declared an official of the International Red Cross, met by AFP at the Armenian checkpoint of Kornidzor, on the way. of the convoy.